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Little ole' Nova Scotia has known it's share of hot humid summers, but never like this August is giving us. Oh my goodness! I have such compassion now for those of you in the southern US.
I don't have air conditioning. I live in a lovely, shady spot where on average, you can honestly complain 3X during the summer of the excessive heat and humid conditions. But this summer, the fans are on full blast all day long, the refrigerator is stocked with ice water, ice tea, fruit juice and popsicles. I need only sit and I'm sweating; and any movement at all brings on a deluge of water dripping everywhere.
Why didn't I do my summer household chores in early July? Still, with students starting to return next weekend, it has to be done. So, I've been painting walls and trim, recovering bedroom chairs, refurbishing lampshades and rearranging pictures to be hung and books etc to be discarded. I work, I sweat .... I shower and I pop open a cold one. (I thank God for the guy who invented beer and for the next guy who thought about dropping in a slice of lime! And yeah, kudos to the refrigerator inventor!)
I also spend Saturday mornings at my local Farmer's Market. (I have become the new Sat morn Market Manager/Wrangler.) And even though we should be living on a steady diet of fresh peaches, blueberries and yogurt during this time of year, I am seduced by fresh veggies -- the multi-colored beets; the different greens of the lettuce, kale, chard; the silky ears of corn; and the unknowns ......... such as this Kohlrabi.
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Wiki says: " The taste and texture of kohlrabi are similar to those of a broccoli stem or cabbage heart, but milder and sweeter, with a higher ratio of flesh to skin. The young stem in particular can be as crisp and juicy as an apple, although much less sweet."
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I haven't tried him yet, but I've searched out recipes and plan on roasting cubes in olive oil and garlic and just before eating it, splashing it with a good vinegar. A good vinegar like the Maple Rum Balsamic I bought in July at the Lunenburg Farmer's Market. (Do you remember me highlighting that booth -- Salty Betty? She also sold Lemon Rose Sugar.)
I also brought home fresh garden carrots and parsnips from the Market and served them for Sunday's family dinner.I heated olive oil & real butter, browned some pork tenderloin with sliced onions, deglazed the pan with the delicious Maple Rum Balsamic (WHAT an aroma!), added the scrubbed, chunked veggies along with a couple of cubed sweet potatoes, a sprig of fresh Thyme, a little salt and pepper, a generous splash of white wine, a small handful of dried cranberries & slivers of dried apricot; covered the pan and transferred the whole to the oven for an hour to roast.
Perfection! The pork was tender and fragrant with thyme; the veggies infused with the sweet maple/rum flavor; and every now and then, your bite would be surprised by the soft dried fruit.
It was worth the sweat!
Now I'm off to try to find a recipe for Maple Rum Balsamic so I can share this treasure with my family and friends!
How are you spending your sweaty days?
11 comments:
So far August has been cooler here than July was. I have air conditioning and spent way too much time indoors. Hopefully after today's rain I can get outside more. My dad loved Kohlrabi and ate it raw sliced with a little salt. I love all the fresh fruits and veggies this time of year. Hope your Tuesday is a terrific one!
ALL summer here was HOT, HOT HOT, like you describe. But for us August has cooled things down. I have never had Kohlrabi. Will have to check it out. That dinner you cooked has my mouthwatering. I can almost smell the aroma of all those good things cooking. take care.
Shhhhh, I'm not here so I'm flyin' under the radar. The Ponderosa is so stinkin' busy in the summer I can't seem to master keepin' up with it and bloggin' too.
So much for my Super Nezzy Cape! Heeehehehe!
I saw the pic in my sidebar and had to pop in you hot spicy thang!
Our temps have been unreal (above a hundred for weeks) and the drought has hit our crops and cattle hard. Yep, I'll qualify hot too and maybe a little spicy.
God bless and I hope your havin' a magnificent summer my friend. :o)
I love fresh vegetables. I think there are very few that I don't.
It seems to have been rather Hot everywhere this past summer.
But I hate to complain.......cause I sooooo despise the winter.
We like kohlrabi raw, sliced with a touch of salt, and parsnips sliced and boiled. The meal you describe sounds delicious; I wanted to come over to your house, but we live on opposite coasts! I am keeping a lookout for that special balsamic vinegar.
I so love veggies! The Kohlrabi sounds good, I'd love to try some.
We had 14 days in July of temps over 100 degrees. Less then two inches of rain since May. Horrible summer. I hope Autumn turns out better. Now that's my favorite season!
Love Di ♥
yes HOT! when I tell my kids they should stay inside there definitely is something different going on...
the farmers market produce is so delicious....I love everything about it!
Not hot here in my mts, Sandy! Denver is brutal with heat but luckily no humidity. That balsamic sounds delightful. I use balsamic a lot - maple flavor would be yummy.
I've only been home in PEI a few days of this weather and already I'm wishing it gone. Three showers a day it's been and constant changes of clothes. I can't believe I'm saying this but I can't wait for the cool weather of fall.
Oh Sandy, that roasted pork sounds sooooo good. I'll have to look for some of that Maple Rum Balsamic....
What day of the week is the Lunenburg Market? Maybe I'll be able to get there when I'm down to Hfx in early Sept. Or might I find it at the new Hfx Market down by Pier 21??
I grew up eating Kohlrabi. We never cooked it. Peel it and slice it and sprinkle on the salt. We always stored it in water to keep it crisp. Like radishes it can be "woody". So if yours was like that - it was picked too late. It should have a nice crisp texture to it.
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